


Keep me warm on a cold night

by PrintPulse



Series: The Other Side Of Paradise [1]
Category: Fallout 4
Genre: F/M, Friendship, Love, Non-Sexual Intimacy, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-28
Updated: 2018-01-28
Packaged: 2019-03-10 15:51:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 935
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13504764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PrintPulse/pseuds/PrintPulse
Summary: It feels so fucking good to have someone like her, watching his back, shooting the shit and holding him close. When she says they'll always be best friends, they both know she means it.MacCready and Jupiter keep eachother company in Goodneighbor.





	Keep me warm on a cold night

**Author's Note:**

> I have a real hard-on for friendship, you have no idea! This is part of The Other Side Of Paradise, but can be read as a stand-alone.

 

 

Jupiter sighs, leaning further into MacCready’s chest, feeling his fingertips tangle in the tight curls cropped close to her head. It's late and they're exhausted; having finally tumbled through Good Neighbours doors with a rabid Commonwealth nipping at their heels. The mattress beneath them is pure bliss after a couple weeks on the road, sleeping in shifts on concrete floors. MacCready clearly shares the sentiment, if the gentle rumble of contentment he gives is anything to go by. There is a cool breeze, carried through the spider web cracks in the front window, and its welcome in the musty, stagnant room. Despite the grime, Jupiter feels at home in the gentle hum of The Rexford’s neon lights, and the smell of roasting meat from the Drifters' crackling fire. 

 

"Boss," Macready murmurs in her ear, and Jupiter jerks away at the tickle of his breath, "You awake?"

 

"No," Jupiter responds, her words and mouth heavy with fatigue. 

 

"Right, well," he continues, "I was wondering if we could detour through The Slog on our way back?" 

 

"Can do," she murmurs eyes still glued firmly shut. 

 

"Got a hankering for this fine as-, uh, this real good tarberry brew that they used to serve in the Combat Zone. Think I could figure out how to make it with enough time."

 

"I'm sure you could, you alcoholic."

 

MacCready scoffs. 

 

"Hey, it’s not my business what you wanna spend your hard-earned caps on." Jupiter teases, finally opening her eyes, and trying to focus them on MacCready’s face. He's a little too close and she almost goes cross eyed. Outside a drifter laughs; raucous and full bodied. 

 

"At least I don't spend them on ridiculous amounts of Mentats just to get Hancock to notice me." 

 

Jupiter sends a swift, albeit cramped and gentle, kick to MacCready’s balls. He shoves his body back before she can land it, guffawing at her defiant expression.

 

"Oh, Hancock, I didn't see you there, let me just," Macready mimes popping open a Mentats tin and seductively placing one on his tongue. 

 

Jupiter sends another kick his way. 

 

"You're full of it, I do no such thing." She replies hotly, face flushed. 

 

"Yeah, ok." MacCready drawls, a smile flitting across his face. He's lighter now that they're off of the road; lying long and languid alongside her, chin propped up on his arm. He still looks heavy with the Wastes, eyes set in purples hollows and tight lines, but he's relaxed in a way he hasn't been for weeks. Jupiter feels the same, and rolls back onto her back, eyes trained on the ceiling. All joking aside, she knows she can talk to him about this, knows that he will listen. Silence hangs comfortably in the air, and Jupiter rolls the words around in her mouth, trying to figure out the best way to say it. In the end, it's Mac who speaks for her. 

 

"You're allowed to like someone else," He says, face earnest and open, "I know it feels like you're not, but you are. With Lucy I," he falters, before inhaling and ploughing on, "It felt like I was wrongin' her to even think about someone else."

 

MacCready reaches out and brushes a wayward ringlet off of her forehead. 

 

"But neither of them are here,” He inhales deeply, scrunching up his eyes as he exhales. “We are, and its ok – if you like him, it's ok."

 

Jupiter smiles, and closes her eyes. It’s bittersweet, but he gets it- Mac has always gotten it. If he says it's alright, she can believe it, if only a little bit.

 

She reaches out blindly and pulls him atop of her, arms snaking around his torso. He settles atop her with ease, his weight heavy and familiar. 

 

"Thanks," she mumbles atop his head, and she means it. 

 

He hums lightly in response, cheek pressed against her breastbone. MacCready has always found this kind of closeness comforting, since being tucked like sardines alongside other kids at Little Lamplight. Jupiter knows this, of course, and sometimes Mac thinks she indulges him just because she actually fucking cares. At this rate, he’s going to be too spoilt and soft for The Commonwealth.

 

"You don't have to though, you know?" He murmurs, eyes tracing the contours of his rifle, waiting by the bedside in the red neon glow, "Hancock likes you without all the Chems." 

 

"You think? Jupiter asks tentatively, her voice revealing her hand; timid and exposed. She feels like a child again, conspiring with her friends on the playground about the boy she has a crush on. It's altogether ridiculous and frivolous considering everything, but it's kind of nice all the same.

 

"Definitely." Mac responds, resolute, and that's that.

 

Jupiter smiles against his forehead, and Mac grins at the feel of it. It feels so fucking good to have someone like her, watching his back, shooting the shit and holding him close. When she says they'll always be best friends, they both know she means it.  

 

They'll stop by and see Hancock tomorrow, after stopping at KLEO's to swap out scavenged ammo for shit they can actually fire from their guns. No doubt he'll be lounged over the worn red sofa, arms splayed and head lolling, heady with jet even in the early morning. Or maybe he'll surprise them, and be sharp on ‘tats, thumbing through whatever mayoral duties land in his lap. Either way he'll brighten at the sight of them, at the sight of her, his smile pulled taught over scarred skin. The thought makes Jupiter’s heart beat furiously, and she finds she can't wait for the morning.

 


End file.
